Meo — Restaurant in Vancouver

A newly opened cocktail bar located in the heart of Chinatown. We were excited to try it and had quite a high expectation since it’s brought by the team of Bao Bei and Kissa Tanto.

Soon as we walked in, we could feel the nostalgic vibe of nightlife of Hong Kong in the 70s, which we loved, not to mention the hostess was super friendly. We spent some time to appreciate the decor after we’re sat. Plus we’re struggling with the choices but have decided to go with highball La Piscoteca and Singul Blossom for the first round, Grasshopper for the second round.

La Piscoteca: mixed with several ingredients. We enjoyed the bittersweet taste but it’s not quite there yet for its component elements. Even though it had layers, it’s almost like they didn’t balance well together.

Sinful Blossom: As osmanthus lovers, this was a rather disappointing drink because the osmanthus tea got lost in the process and all we could taste was rose wine and plum. (Osmanthus usually offers a very subtle yet sophisticated flavour but if you don’t utilize it well, it’ll lose its characteristic, and in this case, it didn’t bloom)

Grasshopper: it’s definitely better than the two above. The mouthful texture was exiting and the layers were like riding a roller coaster. It had a strong sake taste at first then slowly dived into the pandan world and ended with emptiness. We were expecting something after the pandan but that was it. Would’ve loved it if it ended with a refreshing taste (thought lime would do but no, unfortunately)

We also ordered a couple of food items which we fairly enjoyed, especially the sweet green curry. It was a well executed dish, simple yet elegant, would recommend. Our server tried her best to be attentive but we did feel neglected sometimes. I wouldn’t be too harsh on this considering it’s a new bar but do hope they could pick up the pace in the future. Although our initial experience wasn’t the brightest, we would come back to try other...

The ambiance of this place is pleasant. A nice space to enjoy drinks and appetizers with friends. An important note is that the washroom is located down a flight of stairs. I did not see any elevator access, so I recommend contacting the restaurant in advance if accessibility is of concern.

Only giving 2 stars because my friends thought the food was good. Personally, I found it mediocre and rather underwhelming. One of the first dishes served was the patatas bravas. We had hoped for something reminiscent of what we had in Spain, but the restaurant's twist fell short of expectations, though this in itself was not the core issue.

The main concern arose when a friend of mine, who is a food blogger, took a photo of the dish and we noticed a piece of hair protruding from underneath the sauce. The restaurant is dimly lit, so without the flash, we likely would not have noticed it until it was in one of our mouths. We brought this up to the staff's attention and were met with a dismissive "That's OK" followed by a replacement dish. No apology, no acknowledgement of the seriousness of the matter. The response we got was shockingly casual, I hope this is not a routine occurrence.

From that point on, the dining experience deteriorated. We felt compelled to inspect every dish that followed. When settling the bill, I expressed my disappointment to our server on how the situation was handled. She acknowledged how she would pass on this message to management to ensure it doesn't happen again. What kind of rubbed me the wrong way was when she asked whether I would like the dish removed from our bill. Frankly, that should never have been a question.

To make matters worse, we were celebrating a birthday and had hoped it would be memorable in a good way. Instead, we ended up dining elsewhere afterward because we were still hungry....

first time trying this meo and was fairly impressed! we tried 6 menu items; french toast, "patata brava", milkbun, beef burger, oysters, and the octopus, and loved every single dish. My favourite drink was the grasshopper, and would definitely give that another go.

in terms of the atmosphere, I would say the music was really nice but extremely loud, you kinda have to speak a bit louder to talk to the person in front / beside you, but the flip side is that the music kinda drowns out the sounds of the conversations of the people at other tables. it is also dark lighting, and with a combination of that, loud music, and drinks, with a lot of people talking a lot, can also make the environment feel quite stuffy. I did have to step out for some time, to catch my breath, and when I was standing outside, I did notice another party come out and say the exact thing that they needed the air. however, it was very beautifully decorated, and the menu was well designed too.

I would say that the service could be improved a little. It seems like the servers actively avoided making eye contact with you, and every time I said thank you when they put a dish down, they did not acknowledge it at all. they kinda just had a straight face, and then walked away from the table, this happened both with our server and multiple other staff. this is not really the level of service I expect, given that the owners of the restaurant own Kissa Tanto, which has a Michelin star. On a more positive note, the man with the nice beard who was serving food (maybe the manager? he gives off those vibes) was really kind, and well-spoken, and I appreciated that he explained what was on/in your dish. very knowledgable. Also, our hostess was really nice, and welcoming too!

overall, a great experience, and i would still come back...